The good guys thread

[kuhio98]

Lisa - thank you for your dedication to this thread, and thank you to others that have posted stories too. We read of so much bad in the world today, that it is refreshing to read of the good all around us that would otherwise go unnoticed and unacknowledged.

It's heartening to hear that people are reading and enjoying. I love hearing stories from others and am enjoying searching for more stories.
I set a personal goal this year to not forward on any of those sad, awful e-mails we get daily. I found myself getting so depressed reading sad stories about man's inhumanity to man and animals. Who does it help to spread that sick news around the globe? I've found that I'm happier these days since I've been concentrating on sharing stories about people and animals who help make the world a kinder, nicer place to be.

[kuhio98]

The world seems to have its values skewed sometimes. Like, people will buy a celebrity a round of drinks or comp them dinner. The celebrity could probably buy everyone’s dinner and not miss the money. Heck, they could probably buy the restaurant itself with just their pocket change. But, people will give a rich person something “on the house” instead of giving it to the homeless person who might not have eaten for a while. So, I’ve always wondered about this and one day found myself in a sorta similar situation.

No, I’m not rich and I’m not a celebrity, but whenever I got my hair colored and cut, my hairdresser would load me down with a bag of free products and samples that she wanted me to try. Sure, she was hoping I would fall in love with some of them and become a repeat customer, but I’m not a girly-girl and ended up just throwing them in my car trunk and forgetting about them. I could well afford these products but because we are friends, she gave me lots of freebies. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings by turning them down.

After my hair appointment, I go next door and pick up a pizza for dinner. Bobcat loves their pizza but it is on the far south of town where we hardly ever go, but that’s where my hairdresser is so we have a monthly routine of hair and pizza.

A young lady with thin, limp, lifeless hair scraped back and secured with a rubber band started waiting on me. She is a single mother and can’t afford all the pricey products they sell next door. So, after I ordered my pizza, I asked her if she wanted to try some of the samples. She jumped at the chance. Now, each month I give her the bag of freebies and we visit for a few minutes while I wait for the pizza. She tells me about her little girl and her life. Between working full time and going to school part time, she is a very busy lady and can’t afford the little things that make life a little nicer. Her hair looks so much better these days. Still haven’t told my hairdresser that I give the products away to someone who can really appreciate them. I about fell over when she told me her name – Cat. It’s not short for anything. Her name is actually Cat! And you know how much I love cats.
Lisa Tennison ~ Anchorage, AK

[carole]

Aww Lisa what a heart warming story ,isn't it wonderful how people come in to our lives,through different circumstances,and how they can enrich our lives and vice versa,you are always a very caring and giving person ,and it is so lovely you can bring some joy in to cat"s life,how gorgeous her name being that.

[kuhio98]

When I arrived in Sydney Australia two years ago from Brazil to study, I struggled to find work to support myself. My savings soon became dangerously low and I was distressed that I might have to give up my overseas dream.
One day, I was at the park, worrying about the future and arguing with my own thoughts. A lady sitting next to me noticed the concerned expression on my face and gave me a sincere smile. She asked if I was OK, if something bad had happened and if I needed any help. I did not want to bother someone I had just met with my problems, and so pretended that everything was fine. But we ended up chatting for nearly two hours about life in Brazil and what I thought about Australia. This woman gave me lots of tips about places to visit.
Before we knew it, it was almost five o’clock. She said she had to get to work and unexpectedly invited me to accompany her. Why not? I thought.
We arrived at a restaurant and the most amazing thing happened. She said that she owned the place and needed some help in the kitchen. She asked if I wanted to work for her. I accepted, of course, and started the next day.
I spent almost a year working there, improving my English, developing my skills, and, most importantly, building a good relationship with my boss. Even now, living in different cities, we are still close friends and enjoy sharing long chats about life.

[kuhio98]

Because Help Comes in Many Forms
When my 2-year-old son, Ben, died from a genetic disorder, I couldn't bear the thought of cleaning out his room. So I gratefully accepted when Ben's physical, speech, and occupational therapists offered to do it for us during his funeral. After we got home we found that not only had they packed away his clothes and toys and removed the medical equipment but they also cleaned the rest of our house, left gifts for our older child, and stocked our cabinets with supplies. There was even a bouquet of flowers on the table. They went above and beyond to make our tough day a little more bearable.
-- Jamie Fields, Malvern, Arkansas

[kuhio98]

Corrections
I have been a Corrections Officer in Ohio for a little while now and as most people can imagine, you see a little bit of everything. Whenever someone new comes in to serve their jail sentence, I have to book them into the jail where I also talk to them and get a sense of their personality. This particular man told me of his massive run of bad luck which eventually ended with him in this position. He got into a fight with his wife that will most likely end in a divorce and drove off angrily into the night. Unfortunately, he drank literally one too many before he left and he totaled his car in a ditch which resulted in his arrest. Now, I must have heard a MILLION sob stories from people who got busted, but for some reason… I felt really bad for this guy. During the booking the man unexpectedly began to cry so naturally, I asked him what he was crying about. He told me that his wife was going to leave him because of his drinking problem and that he said some things to her that he believed he couldn’t take back. I said, “You’re not a bad man, you just made a mistake. I’m not here to judge you for anything that you’ve done. We all make mistakes and we’ve all said something in anger that we later regretted. In a couple days when you get out of here, apologize to your wife and work it out. I can’t guarantee she’ll forgive you, but I will guarantee that an apology will make a huge difference to her. The man looked up at me in shock and said, “You’re the first person I’ve met in law enforcement who cares about my side of the story. All they see is a miserable drunk.” When the man was released a few days later, I noticed him walking out the door as my shift was ending and I remembered that he totaled his car. His house was at least 10 miles away from my facility and he just started walking. I hopped in my car, still in uniform, and pulled up next to him. I said, “You want a ride?” He hopped in and nearly cried with relief. When I dropped him off I shook his hand and wished him good luck. To my surprise, he shook my hand and hugged me with the other, then said, “Thank you… thank you for your kindness. I wish there were more officers out there like you.” I drove home knowing that I helped that man with his personal problem and I restored some of his faith in law enforcement.

[kuhio98]

Bright sun
I was driving along a country road on a lovely sunny day when I saw an elderly gentleman walking on the footpath in the opposite direction. He was holding his hand above his eyes to shield them from the very bright sun. We were at least a mile from the nearest house so he was quite clearly going to be struggling to see for some distance ...... so I did 2 U turns to bring myself back to him and stopped alongside him and gave him my baseball cap. He was amazed that I would do something so kind. He was really grateful and offered to pay for the cap, but I said no and told him it was a gift. As we parted I saw him walking off with a smile and a renewed vitality.